Formation of All-Carbon Quaternary Centers via Enantioselective Pd-Catalyzed α-Vinylation of γ-Lactams.

Herein, we report an enantioselective vinylation of α-substituted γ-lactams that forges quaternary centers in up to 59% yield with 94% ee. The use of canonically inactive vinyl chloride electrophiles afforded the highest yields and levels of stereoselectivity, and a range of trisubstituted vinyl chlorides were found to be proficient in promoting this transformation. These stereogenic products could be further elaborated to functionally rich scaffolds, thereby highlighting the synthetic utility of this process.

Development of a Nickel-Catalyzed N-N Coupling for the Synthesis of Hydrazides.

A nickel-catalyzed N-N cross-coupling for the synthesis of hydrazides is reported. O-Benzoylated hydroxamates were efficiently coupled with a broad range of aryl and aliphatic amines via nickel catalysis to form hydrazides in an up to 81% yield. Experimental evidence implicates the intermediacy of electrophilic Ni-stabilized acyl nitrenoids and the formation of a Ni(I) catalyst via silane-mediated reduction. This report constitutes the first example of an intermolecular N-N coupling compatible with secondary aliphatic amines.